Effects of Alkyl Aluminum on SiO2‐Supported Silyl‐Chromate(Cr)/Imido‐Vanadium(V) Bimetallic Catalysts for Producing Bimodal Polyethylene

SiO₂‐supported Cr–V bimetallic catalyst can be used for producing bimodal polyethylene which can be applied for high‐performance pipe material. Alkyl aluminum are used to prereduce the bimetallic catalysts, and the effects of alkyl aluminum for the bimetallic catalyst are fully studied by catalyst characterization, polymerization kinetics, and the properties of polymer product by the comparison with the catalyst without prereduction. The result shows that the optimum polymerization activity is almost double after the catalyst is prereduced by triisobutylaluminum (TIBA), and the needed dosage of alkyl aluminum also is decreased significantly. The alkyl aluminum of the prereduced catalyst can also act as a chain transfer agent, significantly reducing the molecular weight of the polymer. The diethylaluminum chloride (DEAC) is mostly deactivating the Cr species during the ethylene polymerization. The synthesized catalysts, prereduced by TIBA, triethylaluminum (TEA), and DEAC, all exhibited good hydrogen response and comonomer interposition ability, which will be favorable for the further application of the bimetallic catalyst in the industrial field.

     

Preparation of bimodal HDPEs with metallocene on Cr‐montmorillonite support

Previously described Cr‐montmorillonite (Cr‐MMT) was found to retain reactivity in the ethylene polymerization reaction regardless of which alkyl‐metal was used for workup in the preparation process, as long as alkylaluminium was used as a cocatalyst in the actual polymerization reaction. Introduction of hydrogen pressure was found to regulate the polymerization to give the product polymer with a narrower weight distribution, albeit with a somewhat smaller average molecular weight. Supporting metallocene onto Cr‐MMT produced a binuclear catalyst system which gave rise to bimodal polyethylene (PE). Polymer composition of the produced high density polyethylenes (HDPEs) could be controlled by changing factors such as the polymerization conditions and the identity of the metallocene compounds. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 3722–3728, 2010     

A Novel SiO2‐Supported Fluorine Modified Chromium–Vanadium Bimetallic Catalyst for Ethylene Polymerization and Ethylene/1‐Hexene Copolymerization

Phillips catalyst is one of the most significant industrial ethylene polymerization catalysts. Chemical modifications have been carried out to tune the Phillips catalyst performance and improve the polyethylene properties. After the modification of the catalyst by fluorine, the polyethylene product with higher molecular weight (MW) and narrower molecular weight distribution (MWD) is suitable for producing automobile fuel tanks. Vanadium containing Phillips catalyst enhances α‐olefin incorporation and MW regulation. In present work, fluorine modified and unmodified chromium–vanadium (Cr–V) bimetallic catalysts are prepared and explored. Compared with the fluorine‐free catalyst, the activities of F‐modified bimetallic catalysts slightly decrease with the increasing MW of the product and the hydrogen response increases slightly. Due to the synergistic effect of the chromium, vanadium and fluorine on the silica gel support, the short‐chain branch distribution (SCBD) of copolymers from F‐modified Cr–V bimetallic catalyst (Cr–V–F)⁶⁰⁰ is more beneficial than that of Cr–V bimetallic catalyst (Cr–V)⁶⁰⁰ and F‐modified Cr–V bimetallic catalyst (Cr–V–F)⁵⁰⁰. The fluorination of Cr–V bimetallic catalysts has not only preserved the high polyethylene activity of bimetallic active sites but also produced the advantage of the high MW ability from fluorine.

     

Heterogeneous metallocene catalysts for ethylene polymerization

The catalyst precursor 9-fluorenylidene-1-cyclopentadienylidene-2-hex-5-enylidene zirconium dichloride proved to be highly active in the heterogeneously catalyzed polymerization of ethylene using silica gel/partially hydrolyzed trimethylaluminum (PHT) as cocatalyst. The substitution of position 4 of the fluorenylidene fragment and position 3 of the cyclopentadienylidene ring improves the catalyst activity. The introduction of a phenyl group into the bridge increases the catalyst activity and the molecular weight of the polymer. The prepolymerization of this catalyst system leads to a major change in catalyst and polymer properties. A significant increase in catalyst activity and a lower molecular weight of the produced polyethylene is observed. The presence of hydrogen during prepolymerization or polymerization of ethylene produces a broader molecular weight distribution indicating a higher number of different active centers.     

无机/有机复合载体负载乙酰丙酮铁/双亚胺基吡啶催化剂及其乙烯聚合

采用溶胶-凝胶法,将苯乙烯-丙烯酸共聚物(PSA)包覆于955 Davison硅胶上得到无机/有机复合微球载体,并在2,6-二[1-(2-异丙基苯基亚胺基)乙基]吡啶/Fe(acac)3均相催化剂中浸渍后得到负载型双亚胺基吡啶铁催化剂.该催化剂在生产高结晶度(72%)聚乙烯的同时,还能生产一定量的α-烯烃.考察了不同膜材料以及聚合条件(不同助催化剂,压力,温度,Al/Fe摩尔比)对聚合活性以及聚合产物性能的影响,发现温度对聚合产物的α-烯烃与聚乙烯的质量比影响最大,助催化剂类型既影响催化剂的活性,也对最终产物的性质有着很大的影响.氯化镁处理的PSA作为膜材料时,负载2,6-二[1-(2-异丙基苯基亚胺基)乙基]吡啶/Fe(acac)3所得到聚乙烯分子量较低(Mw=11.9×104),结晶度较大(72%),熔融指数MI较高(2.35 g/10min),可作为双峰聚乙烯中的低分子量部分加以利用.     

Effect of experimental conditions on ethylene polymerization with in‐situ‐supported metallocene catalyst

Ethylene polymerization was carried out with a novel in‐situ‐supported metallocene catalyst that eliminates the need for a supporting step before polymerization. The influence of the metallocene amount, aluminum to zirconium mole ratio, temperature, pressure, and cocatalyst type on polymerization kinetics and molecular weight distribution of the produced polyethylene was studied. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 1803–1810, 2000     

Ti-Hf双金属高效载体催化剂合成宽分子量分布聚乙烯的研究

乙烯聚合;乙烯-丁烯聚合;双金属催化剂;Ti-Hf双金属高效载体催化剂合成宽分子量分布聚乙烯的研究     

Ethylene and 1‐hexene copolymerization with CO‐prereduced phillips CrOx/SiO2 catalyst in the presence of Al–alkyl cocatalyst

Phillips catalyst has been contributing to about 40% of world high‐density polyethylene production because of its ability to give products with unique microstructures like broad molecular weight distribution as well as short and long chain branches. Even after 50 years' effort, some crucial problems concerning the nature of active sites, polymerization, and branching mechanisms are still kept mysterious. In this work, ethylene and 1‐hexene copolymerization with Phillips catalyst prereduced by CO was carried out in the presence of triethyl aluminum (TEA) cocatalyst. The microstructures of polymers were investigated by ¹³C NMR and gel permeation chromatography (GPC) methods. A hybrid‐type kinetics was found for both homo‐ and copolymerization kinetics, which indicated that there existed two types of active sites namely site A and site B. Site A with instant activation, high activity, and fast decay was transformed from a metathesis site, namely Cr(II) site, coordinated with CO or CO₂ through desorption of CO or CO₂ by TEA, which contributed to the formation of short chain branches, especially methyl branches. Site B with slow activation, low activity, and slow decay was generated from reduction of residual chromate (VI) by TEA. Both 1‐hexene and TEA can decrease the molecular weight of polyethylene as well as enhance short chain branching. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 4632–4641, 2005     

Transition metal complexes of tetradentate and bidentate Schiff bases as catalysts for ethylene polymerization: Effect of transition metal and cocatalyst

This article compares catalytic performance of ethylene polymerization in similar polymerization conditions of transition metal complexes having two ligands [O,N] (phenoxy‐imine) and having one tetradentate ligand [O,N,N,O] (salphen or salen). It is shown that the activity of both complex types as well as the product properties depend in the same way on the type of central metal in the complex and on the cocatalyst used. Although the type of ligand has some effect on the catalyst activity, yet it does not control the properties of the obtained products. The vanadium and zirconium complexes, irrespective of the cocatalyst used, yield linear polyethylene with high molecular weight (a few hundred thousand g/mol). Similar products are formed when titanium complexes activated with MAO are employed. On the other hand, the same titanium complexes in conjunction with Et₂AlCl, yield low molecular weight polyethylene (of a few thousand) and additionally a mixture of oligomers. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 565–575, 2009     

Polyethylene with Reverse Co‐monomer Incorporation: From an Industrial Serendipitous Discovery to Fundamental Understanding

A triethylaluminium(TEAl)‐modified Phillips ethylene polymerisation Cr/Ti/SiO₂ catalyst has been developed with two distinct active regions positioned respectively in the inner core and outer shell of the catalyst particle. DRIFTS, EPR, UV‐Vis‐NIR DRS, STXM, SEM‐EDX and GPC‐IR studies revealed that the catalyst produces simultaneously two different polymers, i.e., low molecular weight linear‐chain polyethylene in the Ti‐abundant catalyst particle shell and high molecular weight short‐chain branched polyethylene in the Ti‐scarce catalyst particle core. Co‐monomers for the short‐chain branched polymer were generated in situ within the TEAl‐impregnated confined space of the Ti‐scarce catalyst particle core in close proximity to the active sites that produced the high molecular weight polymer. These results demonstrate that the catalyst particle architecture directly affects polymer composition, offering the perspective of making high‐performance polyethylene from a single reactor system using this modified Phillips catalyst.     

配体骨架烷基取代基对α-二亚胺镍催化乙烯聚合的影响

合成了4种α-二亚胺镍催化剂Ar—NC(R1)C(R2)N—ArNiBr2[Ar=2,6-dimethylphenyl,R1=CnH2n+1,R2=CmH2m+1;其中Cat1:m=1,n=1;Cat2:m=2,n=1;Cat3:m=3,n=1;Cat4:m=2,n=2],考察了聚合温度、催化剂浓度和催化剂配体骨架碳原子上烷基取代基对乙烯聚合反应活性、聚合物链结构和结晶性能的影响.实验发现,当配体骨架上烷基取代基R1和R2不同时,催化剂具有较高的活性,且聚合物分子量也较高;其中,Cat2和Cat3在20℃,乙烯常压和5.8mmol/L催化剂用量下,乙烯聚合活性达1.86×103kgPE/(molNi.h)和1.92×103kgPE/(molNi.h),聚合物分子量(Mw)达6.82×105和1.019×105.聚乙烯链结构分析表明,甲基支链在聚乙烯支链中占主导地位,支化度主要受反应温度的影响;同时还发现,配体骨架碳原子上烷基取代基不同的二亚胺镍催化合成聚乙烯的长支链比例相对较高,特别是在较高反应温度40℃下,己基及以上长支链比例明显增加.     

Aluminum Alkyls as Highly Active Catalytic Chain Transfer Agents

During the production of free radical initiated low‐density polyethylene (LDPE), it was discovered that the addition of low levels of alkyl aluminum compounds caused the molecular weight of the LDPE to drop precipitously. Further investigation demonstrated that aluminum‐alkyl compounds are among the most effective chain transfer agents ever utilized. It was also shown that polymer chains, which transfer to Al alkyl species, contain almost exclusively vinyl terminated end groups. A catalytic chain transfer mechanism is proposed in which chain transfer occurs from a growing polymer chain to an aluminum center followed by beta hydride elimination to produce a vinyl terminated polymer chain and a new aluminum hydride bond. This new aluminum hydride bond can then undergo further chain transfer reactions. This is the first time such a catalytic chain transfer mechanism has been reported. As little as 10–20 mol ppm aluminum alkyl species decreased the degree of polymerization by a factor of 2 resulting in chain transfer constant (C_s) values as high as 1000–2000. Density functional theory (DFT) study elucidated the catalytic cycle of triethylaluminum (TEA). It is discovered that, depending on the reaction conditions, TEA can serve as a conventional as well as catalytic chain transfer agent.     

Effects of external donors and hydrogen concentration on oligomer formation and chain end distribution in propylene polymerization with Ziegler‐Natta catalysts

The effect of type and concentration of external donor and hydrogen concentration on oligomer formation and chain end distribution were studied. Bulk polymerization of propylene was carried out with two different Ziegler‐Natta catalysts at 70 °C, one a novel self‐supported catalyst (A) and the other a conventional MgCl₂‐supported catalyst (B) with triethyl aluminum as cocatalyst. The external donors used were dicyclopentyl dimethoxy silane (DCP) and cyclohexylmethyl dimethoxy silane (CHM). The oligomer amount was shown to be strongly dependent on the molecular weight of the polymer. Catalyst A gave approximately 50 % lower oligomer content than catalyst B due to narrower molecular weight distribution in case of catalyst A. More n‐Bu‐terminated chain ends were found for catalyst A indicating more frequent 2,1 insertions. Catalyst A also gave more vinylidene‐terminated oligomers, suggesting that chain transfer to monomer, responsible for the vinylidene chain ends, was a more important chain termination mechanism for this catalyst, especially at low hydrogen concentration. Low site selectivity, due to low external donor concentration or use of a weak external donor (CHM), was also found to increase formation of vinylidene‐terminated oligomers. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 351–358, 2010     

Kinetics,polymer molecular weights,and microstructure in zirconocene‐catalyzed 1‐hexene polymerization

1‐Hexene was polymerized by rac‐(dimethylsilyl)bis(4,5,6,7‐tetrahydro‐1‐indenyl)zirconium dichloride catalyst and methylaluminoxane cocatalyst over the temperature range 0–100 °C. The polymerization rate, polymer molecular weight, and polymer microstructure (stereospecificity and regiospecificity) were studied as a function of the temperature and the concentrations of monomer, catalyst, and cocatalyst. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 3802–3811, 2000     

MgCl_2/AlEt_n(OEt)_(3-n)负载单茂钛催化剂催化乙烯聚合研究

以MgCl2/AlEtn(OEt)3-n为载体,分别负载五甲基茂基三氯化钛(Cp*TiCl3)和五甲基茂基三苄氧基钛(Cp*Ti(OBz)3),得到两种负载催化剂,在较廉价的AlEt2Cl为助催化剂常压下可以高效地催化乙烯聚合.报道了载体的制备、聚合条件(不同的烷基铝助催化剂、聚合温度、铝钛摩尔比)对催化剂的聚合行为以及聚合物结构的影响.研究结果表明,两种负载催化体系对乙烯聚合具有较高的催化活性,可达105g PE/(molTi·h)数量级,所得聚乙烯的黏均分子量在105以上.经过13C-NMR和DSC分析,两种负载催化剂得到的均为线型聚乙烯.与均相催化剂相比,负载后的单茂钛催化体系的聚合反应动力学表现高效而平稳.这表明载体的微孔结构使活性中心得到了有效的分散,有效地提高了催化剂的活性,同时载体的受限空间有效抑制了聚乙烯增长链的β-H消除反应.     

Homogeneous tandem catalysis of the bis‐(diphenylphosphino)‐amine/chromium tetramerization catalyst with metallocene catalysts

Homogeneous tandem catalysis of the bis(diphenylphoshino)amine‐chromium oligomerization catalyst with the metallocenes Ph₂C(Cp)(9‐Flu)ZrCl₂ and rac‐EtIn₂ZrCl₂, is discussed. GC, CRYSTAF, and ¹³C NMR analysis of the products obtained from reactions at constant temperatures show that during tandem catalysis, α‐olefins, mainly 1‐hexene and 1‐octene, are produced from ethylene by the oligomerization catalyst and subsequently built into the polyethylene chain. At 40 °C the Cr/PNP catalyst acts as a tetramerization catalyst while the polymerization catalyst activity is low. Copolymerization of ethylene and the in situ produced α‐olefins have also been carried out by increasing the temperature from 40 °C, where primarily oligomerization takes place, to above 100 °C, where polymerization becomes dominant. The melting temperature of the polymer is dependent on the catalyst and cocatalyst ratios as well as on the temperature gradient followed during the reaction, while the presence of the oligomerization catalyst reduces the activity of the polymerization catalyst. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 6847–6856, 2006     

Polymerization of methyl methacrylate with ethylene bridged heterodinuclear metallocene of samarium and titanium

A novel heterodinuclear catalyst, ethylene bridged samarocene and titanocene chloride (Sm-Ti), was used both as a single component catalyst (cat.) and also by activation with triisobutyl aluminum (TIBA) to polymerize methyl methacrylate (MMA). The binary catalyst demonstrated higher activity than the single component, but the molecular weight of the resultant PMMA is lower. Ultrahigh molecular weight PMMA (1.5×10⁶) was obtained at an attractive conversion (87%) without any cocatalyst. The effects of polymerization parameters, such as temperature, time, molar ratios of Al(i-Bu)₃/cat. and MMA/cat., were studied in detail. The results showed that the catalytic activity had a rather different dependence on the polymerization temperature with/without TIBA. High molecular weight PMMA was much more easily prepared in a bulk system than in toluene solution. The polymer yielded with about 65% syndiotacticity by 1H NMR and 75% by IR spectroscopy, but its stereoregularity did not change too much with polymerization temperature and the concentration of TIBA.     

酚硝酮为配体的锆催化剂合成与表征及催化乙烯聚合的研究

以水杨醛与苯基羟胺缩合制备的酚硝酮为配体制备了Zr的配合物,采用IR、NMR、元素分析、质谱等表征手段对酚硝酮配体以及催化剂的结构进行了表征.研究了以酚硝酮为配体的Zr的配合物与MAO组成的催化体系催化乙烯聚合的行为.研究结果表明,该催化剂乙烯均聚活性较高且具有较好的耐温性,乙烯均聚的活性大于106g/(molZr·h),催化剂的活性随着温度的升高有较大幅度的提高且在100℃条件下活性仍无明显衰减.另外,采用凝胶渗透色谱以及示差扫描量热法对制备的一系列聚乙烯的分子量、分子量分布以及热性能进行了表征,催化得到的聚乙烯分子量可达到105,熔点在132℃左右.     

Tricoordinate Organochromium(III) Complexes Supported by a Bulky Silylamido Ligand Produce Ultra‐High‐Molecular Weight Polyethylene in the Absence of Activators

Low‐coordinate organoCr(III) complexes supported by the silylamido ligand –N(SiMe₃)DIPP (DIPP = 2,6‐diisopropylphenyl) are ethylene polymerization catalyst precursors without the need of additional cocatalyst. The reaction of CrCl₃(THF)₃ with 3 or 2 equiv. of LiN(SiMe₃)DIPP yields either a four‐membered cyclometalated Cr complex or Cr[N(SiMe₃)DIPP]₂Cl, respectively, with no trace of Cr[N(SiMe₃)DIPP]₃. Addition of 1 equiv. of LiN(SiMe₃)DIPP to Cr[N(SiMe₃)DIPP]₂Cl also leads to the four‐membered metallacycle, which upon heating transforms to a new six‐membered Cr metallacycle, likely via a σ‐bond metathesis step. Cr[N(SiMe₃)DIPP]₂Cl can be readily converted to bis(amido)Cr(III) vinyl and alkyl complexes Cr[N(SiMe₃)DIPP]₂R (R = vinyl, Bn, and Me). All of these structurally characterized low‐coordinate Cr(III) complexes with a Cr–C bond initiate the polymerization of ethylene in the absence of activators or cocatalysts, producing ultra‐high‐molecular weight polyethylene.     

The Highly Controlled and Efficient Polymerization of Ethylene

The highly controlled and efficient polymerization of ethylene is a very attractive but challenging target. Herein we report on a Coordinative Chain Transfer Polymerization catalyst, which combines a high degree of control and very high activity in ethylene oligo- or polymerization with extremely high chain transfer agent (triethylaluminum) to catalyst ratios (catalyst economy). Our Zr catalyst is long living and temperature stable. The chain length of the polyethylene products increases over time under constant ethylene feed or until a certain volume of ethylene is completely consumed to reach the expected molecular weight. Very high activities are observed if the catalyst elongates 60 000 or more alkyl chains and the polydispersity of the strictly linear polyethylene materials obtained are very low. The key for the combination of high control and efficiency seems to be a catalyst stabilized by only one strongly bound monoanionic N-ligand.